Hood Canal

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Great Bend of Hood Canal from the southeast

Hood Canal is a fjord off Puget Sound in the U.S. state of Washington

1 Geography
2 Low oxygen levels
3 External links
4 References

[edit] Geography

Hood Canal is a fjord off Puget Sound in the U.S. state of Washington with an average width of 1.5 miles (2.4 km) and an average depth of 500 feet (152 m).^{[citation needed]} Puget Sound is also a fjord, making Hood Canal a fjord on a fjord. It extends for about 50 miles (80 km) southwest from the entrance between Foulweather Bluff and Tala Point to Union, where it turns northeast and extends for about 15 miles (24 km) to Belfair. It separates the Kitsap Peninsula from the Olympic Peninsula for its entire length. U.S. Route 101 runs along its western shore south of Quilcene. The U.S. Navy's Naval Base Kitsap, Bangor Annex, is located on the eastern shore of Hood Canal near Silverdale.

Image:Hoodcanal.jpg

Hood Canal from Camp Parsons Boy Scout Camp

Hood Canal was named by Royal Navy Captain George Vancouver for Admiral Lord Samuel Hood on May 13, 1792. Vancouver used the name "Hood's Channel" in his journal, but "Hood's Canal" on his charts. The U.S. Geographic Board decided on "Hood Canal" as the official name in 1932.^[1]^[2]

Hood Canal is spanned by the Hood Canal Bridge, the third longest floating bridge in the world at 6,521 feet (1,988 m). According to the Washington State Department of transportation, the Hood Canal Bridge is the only floating bridge constructed on saltwater. ^[3] The bridge also accommodates sixteen and a half foot tides.

There are several state parks ^[4] on the shores of Hood Canal including Belfair, Twanoh, Potlatch, Triton Cove, Scenic Beach, Dosewallips, Kitsap Memorial, and Shrine Tidelands.

[edit] Low oxygen levels

September of 2006 marked the discovery of the largest dead zone in the history of Hood Canal. The dead zone may have been caused by low oxygen levels due to algal blooms.^[5] Algal blooms occur in part because of warm weather and the slow turnover of water in the southern end of the canal, causing the build-up of nutrients from fertilizers and leaky septic systems. When the algae die, bacteria feed and their populations explode, robbing the water of oxygen. The fish kill may also be part of a natural 50-year cycle of oxygen levels in the canal.^[6]

In May 2006, divers searching for invasive species discovered a mat of marine bacteria covering a four-mile stretch where all normal sea life was dead. The mat dissipated five months later.^[7] Jan Newton, oceanographer at the University of Washington, said it was important to note that Hood Canal has had very low oxygen for a long time. Similar mats have been found near Tacoma, Washington; San Diego, California; New York City; and New Orleans, Louisiana.^[7]

The oxygen level may also be partially due to a simple change in wind direction. The prevailing north wind generally pushes oxygenated water into the oxygen-depleted area. A sustained south wind will cut off this source of oxygen.^[5]^[6]

The Hood Canal Dissolved Oxygen Program has been formed by 38 groups to try to combat the problem.